By CountingPips.com
A government release today by the U.S. Labor Department showed that weekly U.S. jobless claims decreased in the week that ended on December 18th. New jobless claims fell to a total of 420,000 unemployed workers, a dip from the prior week by 3,000 workers. This decrease matched market forecasts predicting the fall to 420,000 claims.
The 4-week moving average of initial unemployed workers rose by 2,500 from the prior week to a total of 426,000.
Meanwhile, workers seeking continuing claims for unemployment benefits for the week ending on December 11th also decreased. Continuing claims declined by 103,000 workers to a total of 4,064,000 unemployed workers. The four week moving average of continuing claims fell lower by 38,250 workers to a total of 4,155,500.